The Invention relates to the automatic optimization and configuration of devices in a Local Area Network(LAN) by computer program.
Many new technologies have the opportunity to affect the expansion of the home network. IP Phones, IP TV, IP Radio, Gaming Systems, Video Phones, Video Messaging, and Chatting: These combined with the increased efficiency achieved by networking different home computers together along with printers scanners and other devices can make the household Local Area Network a powerful machine.
The limiting factor in the expansion of this technology into the household is the inability of the average computer user to setup and manage the complex settings of such interdependent devices. It is this problem that the invention addresses.
Devices in a network include network routers, modems and other configurable network components, as well as communication end devices that feature a network interface (Computers, IP Telephones, Printers, etc.)
Optimized settings are determined from user input, settings that already exist in network devices, and from alternative parameters that are generated by the method that, if not set, would result in conflicting or inefficient settings.
Methods for the configuration of devices in a computer network by using standard protocols are known and widespread. Settings of Network routers, IP telephones and other network devices can generally be configured ergonomically via HTTP, FTP, Telnet or another standard protocol.
As an example the user thereby sets the network address of a device in the network with a web browser (a program that can display HTML pages, e.g. Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator).
The device in the network subsequently sends an HTML page that contains current settings. The user can enter changes into input fields that are provided in the window of the web browser that displays the settings in a way that is readable by humans.
Finally are the new settings transmitted back to the device in the network when the user hits a button that is provided in the HTML page displayed by the web browser e.g. through the http POST command. In succession, the device in the network reads, interprets and activates the new settings and stores them locally.
Besides the http protocol, also ftp, telnet and tftp are known. Some of these protocols differ greatly in the modus operandi that the user must follow in order to change settings.
Also known are electromechanical switches like for example DIP switches. With such electromechanical components, there is no software based procedure to make settings possible, which would implicate that the user gets no explanations on a screen. It is also impossible to detect colliding or contradicting combinations of settings.
Well-known methods for the configuration of devices in a computer network exhibit the disadvantage that each device in a computer network can only be configured alone or that only a group of devices with the same functionality and from only one manufacturer can be configured at once.
As a matter of consequence, the probability for resources being used two times or that data, in contrast to the expectation of the user, gets blocked instead of reaching the target device. This is often caused by contradictory settings of the devices in a network.
As an example, a firewall (a barrier between two networks that must be surmounted in order to access the respectively opposite network) can close data channels in a TCP/IP network called ‘ports’ and thus interfere heavily with the functionality of an IP telephone. Users or network administrators are consequently forced to localize the reason for the malfunction of the IP telephone and to correct the error by selecting non-contradicting settings for a number of independent devices in a network.